I can remember leaving the “safety” bubble of the hospital with my newborn son like it was yesterday. Sitting in the wheelchair, waiting for my husband to pull the car around, I was suddenly aware of everything.
Why was the sun so hot? Would he get a sunburn?
Oh my god, is someone smoking over there? Can we jail him immediately?
You know what, wind? I don’t like your tone.
That car ride home, which I white-knuckled the whole way, made me keenly aware of how precious and fragile life is. Even sleeping was scary; what if he stopped breathing?
I wasn’t being paranoid, either. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that in 2022, 3,700 infants under age 1 died from sudden unexpected infant death, or SUID. It’s a real fear that many parents silently carry.
Mom Janelle King knows that fear all too well. She shared via TikTok that she was awoken at 6 a.m. by an alert from her Nanit baby monitor saying her 1-month-old son, Zylo, wasn’t breathing.
@hazeleyedj_ Nothing prepares you for the fear. Zylo had just turned a month old at the time – We were fast asleep and his breathing alarm went off. I jumped up, panicked, and shook him just to feel him move. He was okay… but I wasn’t. Motherhood is beautiful, but no one talks about this kind of fear. @Nanit Smart Baby Monitor #ScaryMomMoment #NewMomLife #NanitAlarm #MomAnxiety #MotherhoodUnfiltered #FirstTimeMom #RealMomTalk #ParentingTruths #MomLife #viral #viralvideo #fyp #foryoupage #momcontent #momsoftiktok #momlife #nanit ♬ take a moment to breathe. – normal the kid
In the now-viral video, you see her reach over, gently but frantically, to nudge her baby and make sure he was OK. Thankfully, it turned out to be a false alarm but one that King is grateful for.
“That night, whether the alarm was a false alarm or not, my wife and I were just so grateful to have it,” she told People. “If Zylo had actually stopped breathing, it could have saved his life.”
Moms in the comment section of her video agreed: The security of knowing is worth every penny.
“I’d rather wake up to a false alarm over and over,” wrote one mom.
“15 years and I still check. That fear never goes away,” added another commenter.
Several baby monitors on the market track breathing, heart rate, or oxygen levels and will alert you when something seems off. Here are a few:
Baby Monitors That Alert You to Breathing or Vital Sign Issues
- Nanit Pro Smart Baby Monitor & Flex Stand ($249, Amazon)
Wi-Fi video camera with a small sensor-free breathing band for 0 to 3 months old. - Snuza Hero MD Baby Breathing Monitor ($124, Amazon)
Clip-on wearable that monitors breathing motion. Vibrates to stimulate baby if no movement is detected; sounds an alarm if stoppage persists. - Owlet Monitor Duo Sock + Cam Set ($299, Amazon)
Combines the Smart Sock with camera for video plus a foot sensor that tracks heart rate, oxygen, and sleep trends.
Although they can be expensive, the peace of mind the monitors offer during postpartum is priceless to many moms.
“If there’s one thing I’d share with other parents, it’s this: invest in your baby’s safety and well-being,” King told People. “You won’t regret it.”
